This invention relates to office and task chairs, and more particularly to a cordless electrically-powered adjustable office or task chair that permits multiple power-assisted position adjustments.
Office chairs and more particularly task chairs are often purchased with the user and intended use of the chair in mind. Depending on the application one or more adjustments, at the option of the purchaser, can be provided. This invention provides cordless electric powered adjustments in combinations determined by the purchaser. At the option of the purchaser the chair may be equipped with a single cordless-electrically powered device with the remaining adjustments manual, or combinations of the same, for a fully cordless-electrically powered chair.
Office chairs are chairs used by workers seated at desks and consoles, and task chairs include chairs used in a wide variety of applications where the worker is required to remain seated for long durations to perform their required duties. Because of the length of time that many workers spend seated, it is important that office chairs and task chairs be properly adjusted for each user to provide enhanced comfort. It is also important that workers avoid sitting in the exact same position for extended periods.
To improve the comfort of office and task chairs, provision is usually made for some adjustments to accommodate the physical size of the user. These adjustments usually include an adjustment of the height of the seat relative to the base. Other adjustments that are less frequently provided are adjustment of the chair back height, adjustment of the chair back angle, adjustment of the seat angle, and adjustment of the seat depth. In conventional office and task chairs, the adjustments must be made manually. Often, the adjustments cannot be made while the user is seated. For example, to raise the seat height or change the seat angle, the user usually muse shift or remove his or her weight from the seat. The controls for many of the manual adjustments often cannot be conveniently reached while seated. Moreover, many of the conventional controls are counter-intuitive, for example, on many chairs the user must raise a lever to lower the seat. Thus, chair adjustments can be tedious and time consuming as the user repeatedly adjusts the chair and tests it, and users frequently give up before the chair is properly adjusted, or simply don't even bother to try to adjust the chair and use it as they find it. This is particularly true where more than one person uses the chair such as multi-shift operations, such as in police stations and hospitals. Using a chair at an improper height increases the discomfort and fatigue of the user, reducing productivity.
It is important that workers avoid sitting in the exact same position for extended periods, even in a properly adjusted chair. Thus, periodically changing the chair position, even slightly, can improve the comfort of even a properly adjusted chair, reducing strain on the lower torso and back. However, because of the difficulty of making adjustments in conventional office and task chairs, few, if any, users bother to make periodic adjustments of the chair during the day.